Try this 60 second trick BEFORE dinner to NOT store calories as fat

Did you know that there is a unique trick that's been tested before eating a meal, and if you do it right, you can actually preferentially shift the calories you eat towards muscle cells instead of fat cells?

This is a really simple trick to use daily, and it only takes about 60 seconds before each meal.  I've been using this before my dinners and it makes me feel good to know that it makes it harder for my body to store calories as fat.

Don't worry, this trick doesn't create "bulky" muscles by any means... it simply helps shift your calories into lean muscle instead of fat cells.

Today's article shows quick instructions on how this works:

How GLUT-4 shuttles calories into muscle instead of fat cells (powerful pre-meal fat loss trick)

Have you ever heard of a substance in your body called "GLUT-4" and how it can help preferentially shift calories into muscle cells instead of fat cells?

Well, read on, as I have some interesting science to share with you that I read about recently...

What if we could do a certain type of exercise for only about 1 minute immediately before a meal and this could help stimulate GLUT-4 to shift calories into muscle cells instead of being stored in fat cells?  Sounds good to me!

So what's the trick, and how does it work?

Well, this is yet another trick I learned from reading Tim Ferriss' fascinating book, 4 hour body which contains over 100 of these types of cool tests and studies that Tim researched.

GLUT-4 is glucose transporter type 4.

According to research that Tim has done, doing about 60-90 seconds of muscular contractions a few minutes before a meal and, ideally, about 90 minutes after a meal, helps to bring GLUT-4 to the surface of muscle cells, opening more gates for the calories to flow into.

As Tim continues, "The more muscular gates we have open before insulin triggers the same GLUT-4 on the surface of fat cells, the more we can put calories in muscle instead of fat".

I won't go into all the scientific details, but Tim actually cites several studies in his book that back up his theory that doing these muscular contractions a few minutes before a meal and 90 minutes after a meal help to shuttle calories into muscle cells instead of fat cells.

What Tim himself uses is a combination of bodyweight squats (which he calls "air squats", for contractions throughout the leg muscles), band pull-aparts (contraction in upper back muscles), and wall tricep extensions (pushups would work just as well too).

He chose these specific exercises because they would satisfy the muscular contraction needs in large areas of the body for the pre-meal and post meal contractions, but they wouldn't cause a lot of muscular damage that would interfere with his regular gym workouts and recovery.

Interesting stuff!

And I've certainly been trying to do about 1-2 minutes of exercise now before all of my dinners at home.  I've also been incorporating 2-arm kettlebell swings in my living room for about 60 seconds straight prior to eating a meal, and sometimes incorporate some pushups and band pull-aparts too.

Try out this little pre-meal trick yourself on a DAILY basis, and watch yourself get leaner by the day! 

It works!

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Fat Burning Kitchen Report

 Discover 23 HEALTH Foods that are causing weight gain (You've been fooled)
Also discover if your Kitchen contains fat-burning foods or fat- gaining foods


by Mike Geary - Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
& Catherine Ebeling - RN, BSN
Please continue reading, because in this short article Catherine and I are going to share with you a few simple and easy tricks to turn your "fat gaining kitchen" into a "fat burning kitchen," while also showing you some deceptive "health" foods that are not only making it IMPOSSIBLE for you to lose fat, but also make you age FASTER.

In the next few minutes you're going to discover...

Eating for fat loss is simple, right?
Eat fewer calories than you expend in a certain time period and you lose weight... Eat more calories than you expend and you gain weight... right?
Not so fast!
While it's true that your overall caloric intake vs your caloric expenditure is one of the most important aspects in whether you gain weight or lose weight... there are a lot of factors involved that complicate this, such as:
1. Calorie counting NEVER works!
Almost nobody, and I mean nobody, counts calories accurately.  Controlled studies indicate that the majority of people (between 75-90%) consistently (and massively) under-report their calories consumed when they are asked to track their calories.
I'm going to show you why calorie-counting is completely obsolete (as long as you follow one of the main principles that I'm going to teach you).

2. Appetite control and cravings destroy the ability for most people to ever meet a calorie goal
If your appetite and cravings are out of control, how can you control hunger and actually stay in your goal calorie range for fat loss?  The problem is that most people can't!
There is a trick that you can master that will automatically control your appetite and cravings.
3. Hormone imbalances
If you're eating the wrong foods and don't even know it, this may be disrupting hormone balances in your body and leading you to overeat, decrease your metabolic rate, and other problems that can prevent you from burning off body fat effectively.
If you read below, you'll see how you can reverse these eating habits that are causing hormone imbalances, and turn your body into a fat-burning machine, like it was meant to be.
And don't get me started on the "Food Pyramid"...
The Food Pyramid is an absolute JOKE!
In fact, the food pyramid has mislead almost as many individuals down the depressing road of fat-gain as the crooked food companies and their deceptive food label claims.
So-Called "Health Foods" That Are Causing Your Body to Gain More Body Fat?
I can't tell you how many times I've walked into the kitchen of a client of mine that has hired me for nutritional counseling, and I'm shocked by what I see...
Almost every time, I see their kitchen cabinets and fridge LOADED with foods that they think are "healthy" (or have been deceived by clever food labels into believing are healthy), but in reality are fat-storing traps in disguise.
It's not uncommon to see foods such as:

• whole grain breads
• whole grain cereals
• whole grain crackers
• soymilk
• tofu or "veggie burgers"
• orange juice
• apple juice
• skim milk
• margarine
• pre-packaged "diet" dinners
• gator-ade or other sport drinks
• protein bars (aka - candy bars in disguise!)
• overly processed meal replacements (with more junk than healthy ingredients)
• rice cakes
• pasta
• diet ice cream or diet desserts
• so-called "energy" drinks
• low-fat foods
• low-carb foods
• soybean oil, corn oil, canola oil
• etc, etc

I see this trend over and over again with almost every client when I first inspect their cabinets and the foods that they were buying that they thought were healthy.
What they don't realize is that it's these exact foods that are sabotaging their fat loss efforts, increasing their cravings, throwing their hormones out of whack, and more.
The Simple Solution for Eating a Healthy Diet That Promotes Fat Loss (Permanently)
I'm going to show you that eating for permanent fat loss doesn't have to be complicated.
In fact, if you choose the right foods, and understand how these foods react with your body, this method is a way for you to automatically attain the right calorie level without the need to ever count calories again.
That's why I've teamed up with expert nutrition researcher, Catherine Ebeling, and we've co-authored this new program for you:
The Fat Burning Kitchen:  Your 24-Hour Diet Transformation to Make Your Body a Fat-Burning Machine
by Mike Geary - Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
& Catherine Ebeling - RN, BSN

Inside this brand new program, you'll find:

• the true secret to making calorie-counting obsolete... this is the same principle that will automatically eliminate your cravings and control your appetite permanently (it's the same reason that I personally haven't had a real "craving" in at least 6 years) -- pg 1-2
• the truth about polyunsaturated fats (omega-6's and omega-3's) that most food companies don't want you to know -- pg.18
• which protein bars or energy bars are actually candy bars in disguise and which bars are actually good for you -- pg.50
• the real deal on saturated fat and cholesterol, and why they are essential in your diet -- pg.59
• the "whole grain" deception and why whole grain crackers, breads, and cereals could be packing on more bodyfat -- pg.9
• why that skim milk may not be so good for you after all -- pg.29
• the one time when tilapia and salmon are NOT health foods -- pg.36
• a healthy fat-burning burger option?  Yes -- pg.60
• why soymilk, tofu, and veggie burgers could be increasing your belly fat -- pg.41
• Are sports drinks stifling your fat-burning? -- pg.46
• The only truly healthy options for sweeteners... even non-caloric sweeteners -- pg.83
• A surprising healthy fat in some animal products that actually helps you burn fat and build muscle -- pg.60
• whole eggs or egg whites?  easy answer -- pg.65
• do diet sodas and other diet drinks hurt your fat loss efforts? -- pg.22
• Is whole milk actually better for you than skim milk?  there's more to the story -- pg.67
• A type of saturated fat that actually helps to stimulate your metablism -- pg. 112
• the one time when chocolate can even help to prevent your sweet tooth cravings -- pg.88
• does green tea or oolong tea really increase your metabolism and help fat loss?  the truth -- pg.90
• which fruits and veggies are okay to choose non-organic -- pg.94
• and TONS more secrets to help you permanently transform your diet to force your body to burn fat more effectively.

FREE Bonus:  6-Part Fat-Burning Nutrition Course - On Video!

(Value: $179, but FREE if you order Fat Burning Kitchen today)
By choosing to try out this program and take charge of your diet for life, I've put together a really cool FREE bonus for you.  I know you probably like to see things not only in written word, but also in video tutorials too.
So I've lined up a series of 6 killer video tutorials (by my favorite nutritionist, Isabel De Los Rios) which will help to clarify where you might be going wrong in your food choices, more tricks to eliminate cravings, and even clever time saving tips you can use to eat healthier automatically (without excessive time spent prepping meals).
She even goes through some great examples of food labels showing where the food manufacturers are trying to fool you into thinking their junk foods are "healthy".  This will help you choose healthier at the grocery store.
This video tutorial series are regularly valued at $179.00 separately, but are yours FREE for choosing this program today.

Try it first, and THEN decide 

Of course, as always, you have our Iron-Clad 8-week 100% money-back guarantee if you are not satisfied with the program for any reason.
So you can actually try out the program first and start transforming your diet habits and your body, and then decide if this was right for you.  If at any time in 8 weeks, you decide that this wasn't for you, you can simply email us for a prompt and courteous refund.

Let's get you started right away on solving your diet problems for life and creating a permanent fat-burning environment inside your body.

Special Bonus Section Added:
The Super-Advanced Nutritional Tactics That I Used to Go From 10.2% Body Fat to 6.9% Body Fat in Just Over 3 Weeks (23 days to be exact)
 That's right... although I usually stay in great shape year round, I ended up planning a photo shoot recently and needed to drop a couple % more body fat, and I only had just over 3 weeks to prepare for it.
When you're already fairly lean (I was right around 10% bodyfat at the time), that is when it's hardest to lose that last bit of "stubborn fat", so it takes some advanced strategies to get rid of the last bit of fat.
After studying advanced fat loss techniques for years, I knew exactly what I needed to do and it was just a matter of taking action on it.  So I put together all of my most advanced fat loss techniques I've learned over the years and got to work.

 

In this advanced nutritional fat-burning section, I give you all the dirty details about exactly how I went from 10.2% body fat to 6.9% body fat in only 23 days.  Don't worry, there's absolutely no "fluff" in this section with bland and boring generic advice like "eat lots of fruits and veggies"... Everybody knows that...
Instead, this is the real nitty gritty details of everything I ate, meal timing, carb/protein/fat ratios and the exact timing in relation to workouts to maximize fat burning... and the advanced methods I used for the specific types of exercises and workouts that were necessary to maximize fat loss and lean muscle maintenance for such a short time period.
I even give you the details for the really advanced tactics that involved specific foods, teas, nutrients, spices, etc that I used to get the fastest results during these 23 days.
The powerful thing is... if these techniques worked for me, for that hardest to lose "stubborn fat", then it will work even better for you if you have a little bit more fat to lose. 
 These methods should ONLY be used for 3-4 weeks and ONLY on occasion when you need to really drop body fat and get leaner FAST for perhaps an event that you're preparing for... maybe a wedding, or a beach vacation, or a cruise, or your own photo shoot... whenever you need that extra "burst" of fat loss in just 3-4 weeks time frame.
Grab your copy of The Fat Burning Kitchen today, because this Advanced Fat Burning section is so good and so detailed that we'll be selling it separately for $34.95 in the near future
You'll get the entire 23-Day Advanced Nutritional Fat Burning Blueprint Bonus Section for FREE if you order today.

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I'm confident that you'll LOVE the unique nutrition tips and ideas that you'll gain through this program... You can say goodbye to cravings forever and start eating the right way to turn your body into a fat-burning machine 24/7!
Sincerely,

Mike Geary
Certified Personal Trainer
Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author - Worldwide best seller: The Truth about Six Pack Abs (over 539,000 readers in 163 countries)

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Are Whole Eggs or Egg Whites Better for You?

by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer

Author of best-sellers: The Fat Burning Kitchen & The Top 101 Foods that FIGHT Aging


I was on a weekend trip with some friends recently and one of my friends was cooking breakfast for the whole group. I went over to see what he was cooking and saw he was getting ready to make a big batch of eggs.
Well, to my shock and horror, I noticed that he was cracking the eggs open and screening the egg whites into a bowl and throwing out the egg yolks. I asked him why the heck he was throwing out the egg yolks, and he replied something like this...
"because I thought the egg yolks were terrible for you...that's where all the nasty fat and cholesterol is".
And I replied something along the lines of... "you mean that's where all of the nutrition is!"
This is a perfect example of how confused most people are about nutrition. In a world full of misinformation about nutrition, somehow most people now mistakenly think that the egg yolk is the worst part of the egg, when in fact, the YOLK IS THE HEALTHIEST PART OF THE EGG!  It's a shame at how many restaurants you can walk into these days and see that the "healthy" breakfast menu always has egg white items instead of whole eggs.  Are we really still in the "fat-phobic" 80's? 
By throwing out the yolk and only eating egg whites, you're essentially throwing out the most nutrient dense, antioxidant-rich, vitamin and mineral loaded portion of the egg. The yolks contain so many B-vitamins, trace minerals, vitamin A, folate, choline, lutein, and other powerful nutrients... it's not even worth trying to list them all.

In fact, the egg whites are almost devoid of nutrition compared to the yolks.

Even the protein in egg whites isn't as powerful without the yolks to balance out the amino acid profile and make the protein more bio-available. Not to even mention that the egg yolks from free range chickens are loaded with healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
Yolks contain more than 90% of the calcium, iron, phosphorus, zinc, thiamin, B6, folate, and B12, and panthothenic acid of the egg. In addition, the yolks contain ALL of the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K in the egg, as well as ALL of the essential fatty acids (EFAs).
And now the common objection I get all the time when I say that the yolks are the most nutritious part of the egg...
"But I heard that whole eggs will skyrocket my cholesterol through the roof"
No, this is FALSE!
First of all, when you eat a food that contains a high amount of dietary cholesterol such as eggs, your body down-regulates it's internal production of cholesterol to balance things out.
On the other hand, if you don't eat enough cholesterol, your body simply produces more since cholesterol has dozens of important vital functions in the body.
And here's where it gets even more interesting...
There have been plenty of studies lately that indicate that eating whole eggs actually raises your good HDL cholesterol to a higher degree than LDL cholesterol, thereby improving your overall cholesterol ratio and blood chemistry.
And 3rd... high cholesterol is NOT a disease!  Heart disease is a disease...but high cholesterol is NOT.  Cholesterol is actually a VERY important substance in your body and has vitally important functions... it is DEAD WRONG to try to "lower your cholesterol" just because of pharmaceutical companies propaganda that everyone on the planet should be on statin drugs.
If you're interested in this topic of cholesterol specifically, I have another article listed at the bottom of this page about why trying to attack cholesterol is a mistake, and what the REAL deadly risk factors actually are.
In addition, the yolks contain the antioxidant lutein as well as other antioxidants which can help protect you from inflammation within your body (the REAL culprit in heart disease, not dietary cholesterol!), giving yet another reason why the yolks are actually GOOD for you, and not detrimental.
To help bring even more proof that whole eggs are better for you than egg whites, I recently read a University of Connecticut study that showed that a group of men in the study that ate 3 eggs per day for 12 weeks while on a reduced carb, higher fat diet increased their HDL good cholesterol by 20%, while their LDL bad cholesterol stayed the same during the study.  However, the group that ate egg substitutes (egg whites) saw no change in either and did not see the improvement in good cholesterol (remember that higher HDL levels are associated with lower risk of heart disease) that the whole egg eaters did.
So I hope we've established that whole eggs are not some evil food that will wreck your body... instead whole eggs are FAR superior to egg whites.
But what about the extra calories in the yolks?
This is actually a non-issue and here's why... even though egg yolks contain more calories than just eating the egg whites, the yolks have such a high micro-nutrient density in those calories, that it increases your overall nutrient density per calorie you consume.  Essentially, what this does is help to regulate your appetite for the remainder of the day, so you end up eating less calories overall.  In addition, the healthy fats in the egg yolks help to maintain a good level of fat-burning hormones in your body.
Overall, this means that the extra fats (healthy fats) and calories from the yolk are so nutrient-dense that they actually HELP you to burn off body fat!
Also, your normal supermarket eggs coming from mass factory farming just don't compare nutritionally with organic free range eggs from healthy chickens that are allowed to roam freely and eat a more natural diet.  Your typical cheap grocery store eggs will have lower nutrient levels and a higher omega-6 level and lower omega-3 level.  On the other hand, the cage-free organic eggs from healthier chickens allowed to eat more natural feed and roam freely will have much higher vitamin and mineral levels and a more balanced healthier omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid ratio.
I recently compared eggs I bought at the grocery store with a batch of eggs I got at a farm stand where the chickens were free roaming and healthy.
Most people don't realize that there's a major difference because they've never bought real eggs from healthy chickens... The eggs from the grocery store had pale yellow yolks and thin weak shells. On the other hand, the healthier free range eggs from the local farm had strong thick shells and deep orange colored yolks indicating much higher nutrition levels and carotenoids... and just a healthier egg in general.
This is due to the fact that a free-roaming hen allowed to roam on plenty of land will eat a variety of greens, insects, worms, etc transferring MUCH higher levels of nutrients to the eggs compared to an unhealthy hen that is trapped inside a dark factory farm hen house in horrible conditions and fed nothing but piles of corn and soy.  It's a DRASTIC difference in the nutrition that you get from the egg.
So next time a health or fitness professional tells you that egg whites are superior (because of their "fat-phobic" mentality towards dietary fats), you can quietly ignore their advice knowing that you now understand the REAL deal about egg yolks.
And can we all please STOP with this sillyness about eating an omelete with 4-5 egg whites and only 1 egg yolk... If you want real taste and real health benefits, we'd all be better off eating ALL of our eggs with the delicious nutrient-dense yolks.
After all, do you REALLY think that our ancestors thousands of years ago threw out the yolks and only ate the egg whites?  NOT A CHANCE!  They intuitively knew that all of the nutrition was found in the yolks.  But our modern society has been brainwashed with misinformation about fats and cholesterol.
Another interesting study about eggs...
I read a study recently that compared groups of people that ate egg breakfasts vs groups of people that ate cereal or bagel-based breakfasts.  The results of the study showed that the egg eaters lost or maintained a healthier bodyweight, while the cereal/bagel eaters gained weight. 
It was hypothesized that the egg eaters actually ate less calories during the remainder of the day because their appetite was more satisfied compared to the cereal/bagel eaters who would have been more prone to wild blood sugar swings and food cravings.
Oh, one last thing I almost forgot... I personally eat 4 whole eggs almost every day with breakfast, and I maintain single-digit bodyfat most of the year. 
Enjoy your eggs and get a leaner body!

Health Alert:

 These 23 "health foods" CAUSE weight gain
(avoid them!)

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7 Super-Effective Tips for Losing Stomach Fat & Getting Lean Six Pack Abs for Life

Lose Body Fat and Get a Lean Stomach for Good! 

Vince Delmonte interviews author Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist

1.  Mike, what is the number one component to getting a six pack?
MG: Your training style, nutrition, and mindset are all extremely important if you want to stand a chance at getting a six pack... However, if I had to choose 1 component that is most important, it would probably have to be nutrition. Maybe you've heard the saying before that "abs are made in the kitchen".
It really is true, and that's where the majority of people go wrong in the goal to get super lean. Of course, this also ties into mindset, because you really have to get your mind in the right place in order to have the discipline to be able to eat consistently clean enough to get six pack abs.
There's a lot of confusion out there these days about calories, fat, protein, and carbohydrates... every "expert" disagrees with one another on proper ratios and types of diets.  I think people make this way too complicated... If you are just to focus on a good balance between fats, carbs, and proteins, and make sure to eat only natural unprocessed organic foods (as close to their natural state as possible) instead of packaged, processed foods, a lot of the problems that most people have with cravings, a sweet tooth, overeating, blood sugar swings, etc all take care of themselves.
We still can't lose sight of the fact that you can overeat on healthy foods and gain fat even while eating healthy. Therefore, your caloric intake needs to be controlled to a level that will promote fat loss if that's the goal.

2.  Excellent Mike!  Next question... What is one thing I might be doing, unknowningly, steering my quest for a six pack in the wrong direction?
MG:  I'll give 2 things that may be steering you in the wrong direction...
a. Too much cardio
Some people, in their efforts to try to get lean, focus way too much on hours and hours of cardio exercise. The problem is that this can backfire on you by making you lose lean muscle mass over time, which decreases your resting metabolic rate. Once this happens, it becomes easier to pack on body fat than ever before.  I've even seen many people that do too much cardio and end up getting that "skinny fat" appearance, where they have very little muscle tone, yet they have excess stomach fat (even a "gut" possibly).
Instead of excess cardio, focus more on high intensity weight training (yes, even during a "cutting" cycle, where heavier training is even MORE important). This will help maintain your lean muscle mass throughout your body, so that you don't experience the metabolic rate decrease. Maintaining as much lean muscle mass on your body at all times is one of the most important things for staying super-lean for life.
b. Not eating enough healthy fats
This is another area where I see people go in the wrong direction. They are trying to lose body fat and they end up going WAY too low on their fat intake. When you decrease your fat intake too much, you are basically messing up your fat burning and muscle building hormones. It's not uncommon to see people decrease their fat intake too low and end up reducing their testosterone levels significantly.
Try to get some sources of healthy fats with every meal to make sure you don't go too low... This could be avocados, any and all nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, etc), seeds (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds), nut butters (almond butter, natural peanut butter, etc), virgin coconut oil (good source of medium chain triglycerides), extra virgin olive oil, grass fed beef (good source of conjugated linoleic acid and omega-3s), whole eggs (yes, whole eggs...not egg whites), etc.

3. What is one unique way of boosting your metabolism, to finally burn fat, that I might be overlooking?
MG:  Incorporate any form of clean & presses into your routines twice per week. This could be barbell clean & presses or using kettlebells or dumbbells.  If I had to choose one exercise that burns the most calories and has the biggest impact on increasing your metabolic rate, I'd have to choose high intensity clean & presses (with squats and deadlifts being at the top of the pack also).  I like alternating the use of barbells for C&P's one workout and kettlebells for another.
If you want to learn more about how to train with kettlebells, see this article.

4. What is your number one plateau busting secret to lose the last 10 pounds?
MG:  When you get to the point that you're already fairly lean, but just need to lose that last 5 or 10 lbs of body fat that is covering up your abs, you really need to take your workouts to a whole new level of intensity.
Consider adding all-out wind sprints and/or hill sprints into your routine if you want to take it to the next level of intensity.
As for gym workouts, this also means no jibber-jabbering for 5 minutes in between sets at the gym... Instead, you need laser-focused intensity, and one of the best ways to keep high intensity is super-setting or alternating sets. This means while you're resting one area of your body, you're working another area of your body. I usually like to do this by alternating a really tough lower body exercise such as a squat, lunge, or deadlift, with a multi-joint upper body exercise such as a bench press, overhead press, bent over row, or pullup.
Think short rest periods, full body exercises, multi-joint exercises, lots of sweat, and your chest heaving for air... if that's what your workout is looking like, then you're on the right path.  If not, then you're not working hard enough.

5. What is your advice for me to deal with the social temptations of alcohol, eating out, and junk food?
MG: This is something many people struggle with, but if you set some limits, it can be easy to deal with and still stay lean. One thing I'd suggest is to make sure to not get in a habit of drinking alcohol excessively on a daily basis. If you're going to go out and have some fun with friends, try to limit the drinking to only 1 or 2 days max per week. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that we can still go out and have fun with our friends without getting totally smashed.
You need to decide what is more important in your life... do you want to live healthy and have a strong lean body, or do you want to get full-blown drunk every night? There's a lot more to life than alcohol.  This article explains some tips for moderate drinkers to stay lean.
As for eating out... If you're serious about getting and staying lean, eating out should only be an occasional event. Cooking your own food on a daily basis is extremely important as it's very hard to know what is in all of the junk at restaurants and fast food joints. One of the tricks I use when eating out is to NEVER eat fries or sodas (in fact, I never eat fries or sodas AT ALL).
Instead, go ahead and order that burger, but substitute steamed veggies or a salad for the fries. Almost every restaurant will make that substitution for you. And water or unsweetened iced tea are the best beverage options to keep the calories under control when eating out.

6.  Why do I lose motivation when trying to get a six pack?
MG: Most people lose motivation because they simply aren't seeing the results fast enough. If that's why you lose motivation, go back to all of the tips and techniques we've been talking about in here and see where your nutrition or training programs are going wrong so you can get faster results.  Be patient and consistent and the results will come.
Also, you can really stay motivated by focusing on what has been successful so far. For example, maybe your fat loss hasn't been what you wanted so far, but maybe you've increased your pullups from 8 to 13 and your squat weight from 185 to 225 lbs for the same reps. Keep focusing on your successes rather than your failures, and keep going for more successes.
More motivation tips -- Train regularly with a partner. This will keep you both focused and will keep you accountable to someone other than yourself. You don't want to disappoint someone else that you've made a goal with.
Also, keep a picture up in your house or at work of someone's body that motivates you to strive for those results. Look at it every day and keep visualizing your own body improving. Set a realistic goal and a time frame to acheive that goal, such as "I will lose 15 lbs of body fat in the next 8 weeks". The important thing here is realistic goal... don't expect to lose 30 lbs in 30 days (despite those weight loss scam ads that you see everywhere claiming BS like this).

7. I understand you have the number one six pack abs program on the Internet -- Truth About Abs.  Why do you think it's so popular?
My Truth about Six Pack Abs program is so popular because it works!  It's REAL nutrition and REAL training programs instead of useless gimmicks and fads.  I give the TRUTH on what people really need to get lean sexy abs for life and why they DON'T NEED fad gimmicks like diets, ab infomercial gadgets, and bogus fat burning pills that people waste way too much money on.

8.  Who should order Truth About Abs and who is this program not for?
This program is for anyone that wants to truly live healthy and get super-lean for life. I have college students, parents, busy professionals, and even grandparents using this program successfully.
Who is this program NOT for?  Anyone who is lazy, or thinks that there is a "quick fix" out there.  There isn't! So stop looking for a quick fix, and learn the truth!
Plus, when you go to order, I'm actually allowing everyone reading this to "try it before you buy it", so that way you can try out the program, start seeing real results, and then decide if it's right for you.
Check out some of the tremendous results that other readers are getting with the Truth about Abs program

Also, you can view some of the most common questions and answers about Truth about Abs

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Are You Making These 3 Mistakes At Dinner?

By Kevin DiDonato MS, CSCS, CES

What can be said about dinner!       

There may be nothing more satisfying in the world, then sitting down at the table with your family and friends, and enjoying a home-cooked meal.
However, overdoing it at dinner may put the brakes on your fat loss plans!
Why?
Well, the truth is: Although all your meals, snacks, and drinks are important…
Dinnertime may be the easiest time to go overboard on your favorite fixings…having seconds (or even thirds)…and having a few too many adult beverages.

And all those extra calories, well, they could easily end up packed on your hips, butt, or thighs!
If you want to improve your fat loss, then I would suggest you avoid making these THREE mistakes at dinner:

1. You Dine and Dash – To Bed

Eating right before bed may disrupt your sleeping patterns, therefore keeping you up, tossing and turning all night.
And as you know, sleeping is vital to a healthy metabolism!
Not getting the right amount of sleep at night may cause you to crave calorie-rich foods that only add to your waistline.
If you can, try to eat a few hours before bed.  And if you need to eat right before bed, choose a small snack - full of protein -to last you throughout the night.

2. You Have the TV On

One of the worst things you can do for your fat loss is to eat while watching TV.
Mindless eating may cause you to overeat, therefore adding too many calories to your body.
This could ruin all the good you did throughout the day AND boost your fat/weight gain.

3. You Go “All In” on Carbs

Carbs are a necessary ingredient to a healthy fat loss program.
BUT:
If you eat too many carbs (like a big bowl of pasta or an extra-large baked potato) then you could end up regretting your decision.
Besides adding too many calories to your meal, too many carbs could spike your blood sugar levels.
And this crazy spike in blood sugar will spike your insulin levels too!  And when insulin is present, any excess calories could end up being stored as fat!
The easiest way to maintain your fat loss – and eat carbs too – is to choose carbs wisely and be sensible with your portions.

Lose Fat By Eating Sensibly At Dinner

Dinner may easily be the biggest meal – and the time when people cheat the most.
And that could lead to an increase in your waist, hip, butt, or thighs.
But, if you eat sensibly at dinner – meaning you avoid large portions, avoid eating before bed, and avoiding watching the TV at dinner – then you may be able to keep your fat loss on track.



Keep Your Fat Loss On Track With The Help Of This One Simple Trick >>

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Do Artificial Sweeteners (splenda, aspartame, etc) Make You Fat? Natural Alternatives Including Stevia

by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer
author: The Truth about Six-Pack Abs

I wanted to talk about artificial sweeteners today because I've noticed that there's a lot of confusion and misconceptions revolving around these non-caloric sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners and the huge list of products sweetened with them are marketed to you relentlessly as "healthy foods" or "healthier" than sugar or corn syrup sweetened products. But are they really?
Just to clarify, some of the most popular artificial sweeteners on the market today are:

• Splenda (sucralose)
• Aspartame
• Saccharine
• Acesulfame Potassium (aka - acesulfame K)

These artificial sweeteners are used in abundance in almost every "diet" drink, "lite" yogurts, puddings, and ice creams, most "low-carb" products, and almost all "reduced-sugar" products. Heck, even most protein powders are loaded with artificial sweeteners too (just look on the ingredients and you'll usually see one of them).
Splenda is probably one of the worst offenders of claiming to be "healthy" as they say that it's made from real sugar. Don't be fooled! It's still an artificial substance. What they don't tell you is that Splenda is actually a chemically modified substance where chlorine is added to the chemical structure, making it more similar to a chlorinated pesticide than something we should be eating or drinking.
This is one of the biggest misconceptions that I see all of the time and it saddens me to see so many people poisoning their family with dangerous artificial sweeteners like splenda, while falsely thinking they're doing something healthy.
The truth is that artificial sweeteners are not even close to being healthy, and as you'll discover in a minute, can easily be just as bad for you, if not worse, than sugar or corn syrup. Most people think that they are doing something good for themselves by choosing the "diet" drinks or "lite" yogurts compared to the sugar-laden versions, but the problem is that you're exposing yourself to a whole new set of problems with the artificially sweetened drinks and foods.
I know you're probably frustrated by all of the contradicting messages you hear each day about which foods are good for you and which are bad. I'm sure just today you probably saw some clever ad or commercial somewhere screaming health benefits for a food product that is loaded with artificial sweeteners. Don't worry. Just stick with me and I'll get past the marketing hype for you and decipher the truth. I'll also give you some ideas for great alternatives to artificial sweeteners as well as alternatives to sugar or corn syrup sweeteners.
The fact is, artificial sweeteners vs. sugar or corn syrup is really just a battle between two evils. Which evil is worse?
I'm sure you already know the problems with sugar or high fructose corn syrup sweetened products. The excess empty calories, blood sugar spike, and resulting insulin surge this creates in your body not only promotes fat gain, but also stimulates your appetite further, making things even worse.
On the other hand, artificial sweeteners save you calories, but there's growing evidence that they can increase your appetite for sweets and other carbohydrates causing you to eat more later in the day anyway. Therefore, you don't really save any calories at all. Also, studies have shown that artificial sweeteners can stimulate high insulin levels in your body too, which again can promote fat storage.
All of the 4 artificial sweeteners listed above are nasty chemicals that the human body is simply not meant to ingest. However, most of us are ingesting a whole lot of these chemicals on a daily basis. Aside from the problems I touched on so far, other health issues that have been related to artificial sweeteners in scientific studies as well as observations are:

• some have been linked to potential cancer risks
• negative effects on the liver, kidneys, and other organs
• stimulating cravings
• gastrointestinal problems
• developmental problems in children and fetuses
• headaches
• and too many more issues to list

Now some of the above potential health problems are definitely not proven as fact in studies. However, some of them have been shown in animal studies given high doses. Also, if you do some research, you'll find hoardes of people that attribute the use of artificial sweeteners over the years with all sorts of illnesses in themselves or in family members.
Regardless of the fact that any real health problems for actual human use are not proven yet, I don't know about you, but I'd rather protect myself and my family and steer clear of these possibly dangerous artificial chemicals.
Of course, despite all of the health issues potentially associated with artificial sweeteners, the companies that sell the products will continue to claim that they are fully safe. Don't believe them!  The bottom line is that the body was not designed to deal with foreign substances like artificial sweeteners. Take my word on that one.

So what are your options for alternatives?
Well, your best alternatives for sugar or corn syrup are either raw honey, organic maple syrup, or even a little-known high antioxidant syrup called sorghum syrup (common in the southern US). Even though these alternatives still have the same amount of calories as sugar or corn syrup... honey, organic maple syrup, and sorghum syrup actually provide some nutrients and antioxidants, so it's not just empty calories. Empty calories such as white refined sugar stimulate your appetite more because your body is lacking nutrients.
Now you're probably thinking that you'd like to still save on calories but avoid the nasty artificial sweeteners. Good news... You can!
You've probably seen me reference this natural sweetener in a lot of my recipes. It's called Stevia. I've been using it for years as an alternative sweetener when you still want to save a little on calories and sugar but don't want to harm your health with artificial sweeteners.
Stevia is not artificial like the other chemical sweeteners I mentioned above. Stevia is a natural non-caloric herb that's been used for thousands of years in some parts of the world. It is an herb and when dried into a powder, has a sweetness about 200-300 times stronger than sugar.
One problem I've noticed with using Stevia is that the pure powder is a very powerful sweetener, so you can easily use too much. However, I've found some good Stevia products that use a bulking agent added so that you can measure out the stevia powder in direct comparison to measuring sugar.
I've yet to see any negative reports or health concerns regarding stevia and only positive potential health benefits. After all, it's simply an herb as opposed to an artificial chemical derived in a lab.  I definitely give Stevia my seal of approval. Do yourself a favor (and your family), and if you are currently an artificial sweetener junkie, please consider switching to stevia.
More and more stevia products are available now even in many grocery stores.  One of the best stevia products I've found over the years is made by a company called Steviva. They have an excellent stevia product blended with another natural sweetener called erythritol. I suggest giving it a try! Just look for the "Steviva Blend". You can use it in your coffee or tea, to sweeten up plain yogurt, added to smoothies for extra sweetness, on cereals or oatmeal, in baking, or where ever else you might need a sweetener but want to reduce the sugar content.
Well, that's it for today. I hope you enjoyed this important discussion. Feel free to copy/paste this link and email it to anybody you know that might be overdoing the artificial sweeteners.
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The Top 3 Foods to AVOID at Restaurants (they can make you fat and kill you)

These ingredients not only make you fat, but can be deadly when eaten too often
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer
Author of the best-sellers:  The Top 101-Foods that FIGHT Aging & The Fat Burning Kitchen

I've been traveling a lot for business in the last year, and I've noticed that most people totally fall off their fitness routines while traveling...
In fact, eating out at restaurants frequently is one of the biggest reasons why so many people fatten up while traveling.  It's almost damn near impossible to eat healthy when you dine out, UNLESS you follow a couple simple tricks that I use to make every restaurant meal healthier, reduce calories, and not lose control.
Here's a few tricks you can use to eat healthier and stay lean even while traveling on business or eating out any time for that matter...
The 3 most important things to avoid that are EVERYWHERE at restaurants are:

• the deep fried foods
• the refined starchy foods
• and any sodas, juices, or other sugary foods (except whole fruits, which are great)

This eliminates the major food sources that do the worst damage in our food supply - the evil trans fats, the inflammatory refined vegetable oils, refined starches, and processed sugars.
This means trying to skip the table bread, skipping the french fries (that come with every single sandwich on every menu known to man), and reducing or eliminating all of the heaping portions of rice and pasta that are often loaded on the plates as well.
How to do it healthier, but still satisfying...
Instead, try to order just meat, side vegetables, and a salad, asking for the vegetables or salad as a substitute for the typical fries, rice, or pasta that the meal probably comes with.
Almost every restaurant I've ever been to will always allow me to substitute veggies or a side salad for the fries or chips that almost always come with sandwiches or burgers.
Side note:  It always amazes me how many people scrutinize me because I substitute veggies for fries by telling me that I'm "not living" because I won't eat fries...
Yet they are always the first to complain that they are overweight and have "tried everything", yet can't lose weight.  I'm not sure why so many people think eating french fries equals "living it up"... I'm all for moderation with many things, but if there's 2 things that should be almost totally removed from everyone's diet because these foods are simply that evil... it's fries and sodas!
​Example Substitutions:
Take a look at the typical difference this simple substitution makes between choosing smart and doing what most people do...
Most people will eat a meal out such as this:

• Sandwich or burger -- the bread is usually the unhealthiest part of this
• fries or chips -- source of deadly trans fats
• soda or other sweetened drink -- mostly deadly high fructose corn syrup

A MUCH smarter alternative for a leaner, healthier body is very simply this:

• A steak, chicken breast, or fish piece (this avoids the refined wheat of a sandwich)
• veggies or salad (much better choice than fries or chips)
• unsweetened iced tea or water with lemon (and no diet drinks -- unless you enjoy drinking carcinogenic poisonous artificial sweetener chemicals).

These 2 simple substitutions save at least 400 - 900 calories EACH time you dine out (depending on drink refills and fries portion sizes)... AND you're cutting out the most harmful foods to your body as well by avoiding the trannies and high fructose corn syrup.
Also, it may be rare to find this in most restaurants, but if you can find some that offer much healthier grass-fed beef burgers, it's a much smarter decision compared to grain fattened beef.
Side note:  a little-known way to eat full portions of rice or potatoes and actually get away with it without packing on the body fat is to make sure to schedule a high intensity full body resistance training workout before your scheduled meal time.
Sometimes it may be hard to fit the workout into your schedule right before the meal event, but if you can, the meal can be your "post-workout meal", in which case, your body can handle a higher amount of carbs than normal to help replenish the muscle glycogen depletion you had during the intense workout.
A cardio workout WON'T cut it for this... it must be high intensity resistance training to deplete enough muscle glycogen to handle restaurant portions of carbohydrates.
I hope these dining tips help you choose smarter and healthier next time you eat out.
Here's what you should do next...
Another side effect of these weight gaining foods is that not only are they terrible for your health, but they also make you age FASTER - not only causing a quicker breakdown of your skin, but also making your joints to become creaky and fragile, your blood pressure to skyrocket, your "bad" cholesterol goes through the roof, and your brain health breaks down.
The good news is there are plenty of ways to counter-act the negative effects these foods have on your body, in addition to simple swaps that are not only healthier for you, but also taste delicious!
We'll show you how to find plenty of delicious foods, spices, herbs, and nutrients that 
PROTECT your body from aging on the next page!
You will also discover over a dozen surprising tricks you can use daily to FIGHT aging, helping you to look 5-10 years YOUNGER... click the button below to go to the next page to discover unique and delicious anti-aging foods, spices, herbs, teas, and other potent youth-enhancing nutrients:

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Lean-Body Fitness Secrets Ezine - Do You Have a Beer Belly?

In today's issue of Lean-Body Fitness Secrets Ezine, 
Do you have a Beer Belly?
I'm going to answer a question I get quite often. Many people find that they can stick to a reasonably healthy diet during the week, but think that they're totally blowing everything on the weekends.
Below is a question I just received recently from a customer and some ideas I came up with for him. I think you'll get some good ideas from this on how to deal with the issue of not letting the weekend wreck your whole program.
Q: "Hi Mike, I haven't emailed in a while, so I wanted to update you. I haven't missed a workout yet and I just finished the third week on your program. I am feeling pretty good, and can already see a bit of a difference in the mirror. I'm still far from a 6 pack, but I'm making progress and I'll definitely get there.
I would give myself a grade of B-, because during the week I do very well with my routine and diet, but on the weekends I drink too much beer (empty calories) and my diet suffers a bit with eating out and weekend activities. But all in all it is going well, and I think I'll be a great success story for your testimonials. If you have any nuggets of wisdom or just any suggestions on how to deal with the weekends, I'm all ears."
-Brandon, Saint Louis, MO
A: Good to hear from you Brandon, and it sounds like you're on your way. I can fully relate to your issue of doing well on the weekdays and then drinking a lot of beer and eating late night junk on the weekends. Here's what I've done over the years that helps to keep the lbs off while still enjoying the weekend social scene that involves alcohol and eating out.
If you're gonna drink, try and keep it to light beers or hard alcohol mixed with something non-caloric like club soda. *By the way, tonic water is NOT calorie-free like club soda... it actually has just as much sugar as regular soda.
Anyway, those are the options that would do the least caloric damage, but realize that you're going to take in a TON of extra empty calories any time you drink more than a couple alcoholic drinks.
Also, you're probably going to end up at restaurants and bar situations where everyone is getting deep fried bar food. In this case, whatever you can do, ALWAYS avoid anything deep fried. My best option is I get a burger or grilled chicken sandwich and replace the fries (I call them devil sticks) or potato chips (which are also deep fried) with some sort of steamed veggies or a side salad. That way you eliminate the most evil portion of the meal (the fries) but you still enjoy your burger (which isn't really all that bad) or your chicken sandwich.
Also, if you're doing things right 5-6 days/week, don't stress too much over a bad day or two on the weekends, as long as you keep your calories reasonable and always avoid anything deep fried and any sodas as well. As I've said before, anything loaded with trans fats (like deep fried food) or high fructose corn syrup (in sodas) are the absolute worst things you can put in your body.
If you're serious about your body and health, these should never be consumed, not even occasionally. Trans fats and HFCS are the only two items that I'm a stickler on personally. I'll eat as much of anything and everything else, at least occasionally, like pizza, burgers, ice cream...you name it! But I'll never even touch a HFCS-laden soda or something deep fried in trans fats. They are pure poison in my mind.
As for working out, just follow the general guidelines in my book and the routine I set up for you, and make changes as described in the book when you start to plateau. Also, enjoy the good weather and get outside a couple times a week to do wind sprints. This is one of the easiest ways to get rid of the fat. It doesn't matter if you can't handle all out sprints just yet, but just run as hard and as fast as you can for 50-100 yard dashes, rest 1-2 minutes, and repeat 5-10 times. It's one of the best workouts you can get in only about 10-20 minutes total. Mix those a couple days/week with your normal strength training routines on other days and you'll be kicking a** in no time flat!
Alright, that's all for today. Brandon (from above) is just one of my great customers who is now motivated like crazy after reading through my Truth about Six Pack Abs Program. Because of the fact that he's armed himself with the knowledge and motivation to do it, he's well on his way to enjoying a lean, rock hard body for life!
Check out what some other customers from around the world are saying about this Program - Truth About Abs Testimonials

I'll be back in touch soon with more body-changing tips and strategies.
Stay Lean,

Mike Geary
Certified Nutrition Specialist
Certified Personal Trainer
Founder - TruthAboutAbs.com

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Lean-Body Fitness Secrets Ezine - Fat Loss Success & Failure Habits

Is This You At The Beach!
Or are you just a little overweight, want to get in shape, want to be proud when you remove your clothes on holiday! Then read on........

I just returned Sunday night from a very relaxing vacation in warm sunny Jamaica, and I'm not happy about being back in snowy, cold New Jersey...but I guess I'll deal with it.
Yes, I'll admit that even a fitness freak like me ate until I was stuffed everyday, and drank more rum than I can remember, packing on a few pounds while I was there. But now it's back to my normal lifestyle and the extra fat gained last week will be gone by the end of this week...I guarantee it! No excuses!
Anyway, I wanted to share something with you all that I noticed while I was in Jamaica on the beaches and in the pools.
One of the things that I do on a regular basis to help me continually learn about fitness success and failure is observing people's habits and actions. I feel that these observations are equally as important as reading books, journals, articles, etc. for improving my knowledge of what works and what doesn't in fitness.
Something that happens to me on a regular basis when I meet people is that once they find out that I'm a fitness professional, they start asking me questions about the things that they eat or how they exercise, and what my opinion is on it. I don't mind this, because it gives me some insight on exactly what people do, what they believe, and how things have worked for them.
I will qualify that I only give my advice if it is asked for. I never preach about fitness to someone who didn't ask for my advice. After all, I know I don't want people preaching to me about their expertise if I didn't ask for the advice.
So, one thing I noticed while on vacation last week was that out of hundreds and hundreds of people from all different countries that were walking around the sunny resorts in bathing suits, I only saw a grand total of about 4 people that had anything resembling six-pack abs. That's only 4 people out of probably close to 1000 that I saw throughout the 7 days!
This observation has nothing to do with their actions on vacation, just about their current state of fitness. Now obviously most people, including myself, are not following their normal actions and behaviors on vacation that they would in normal life. That's not the point.
I make observations about the habits and actions of both the fit people and the fat people on a daily basis to help determine successful vs. unsuccessful actions regarding weight management and general fitness. It could be at grocery stores, at the gym, at restaurants, at the office, at someone's house...all are potential spots to learn why people are either fit or fat.
Start paying attention to the actions of the people around you on a daily basis, and their corresponding body shape, and you'll learn a lot. Here are some examples of things you may notice...
You might notice that the overweight woman at the office who claims she can never lose any weight is actually the first one in the kitchen whenever someone brings in free donuts or cookies.
You might also notice that the guy with the beer gut, who says it's impossible for him to get rid of the gut, is skipping breakfast on a regular basis (a killer for your metabolism), and drinking 2 or 3 sodas a day without even realizing it. No wonder he's got a beer gut!
On the other hand, you might also notice that the girl with the slim figure, who seemingly eats all kinds of junk food (and everyone gripes that she should be fat with all of that crap she eats), never actually finishes more than half of what she's eating. When you take a closer look, she's actually not eating that many calories day in and day out, and that's why she's lean. It's not always as it appears on the surface.
The point is that there's always an underlying reason why someone is either fat or fit, and it revolves around their lifestyle, their actions, their habits. Look a little deeper and you'll learn a lot about what people do successfully and where they fail in their quest for a lean body.

If you want to be included among the fitness elite, those 4 out of 1000 people that have six-pack abs, your fully comprehensive guide, revealing all of the secrets of the super-fit class is found in my Truth about Six Pack Abs program. Action mean results!

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